June 4, 2009
GOLD RIVER, Calif. - California qualified its varsity 8+ boat for Friday's semifinal round on the morning of the opening day of the 107th annual IRA Regatta on Thursday at Lake Natoma. The Golden Bears advanced out of the first varsity 8+ heat with the best time of the morning (5:51.50) to defeat four teams, including second-place Cornell (5:55.96). Cal's second varsity 8+ also won its heat and will advance directly to its Saturday grand final. The Bears' other boats - the novice 8+, open 4+ and varsity 4+ - finished second in their respective heats and will move on to the repechage rounds to try and reach the grand finals of their events.
The varsity 8+ semifinal rounds are slated for an 11:45 a.m. start on Friday.
"It was a challenging heat," Cal head coach Mike Teti said of the varsity 8+ race. "Cornell and Northeastern are both good crews and both well coached. I thought after the draw, even though we're the top seed, both those crews are dangerous because they're good. All these crews are pretty closely matched. They've all beaten each other. We wanted to get a good start and hold off any challengers, and we were able to do that.
"Looking at the other heats, Washington and Wisconsin looked like they were cruising easily. Stanford looked very comfortable. Harvard and Brown are both good crews. All these crews are strong programs.
"After this afternoon's racing, the semis will be drawn. We know we'll have a tough race tomorrow."
The Bears' second varsity 8+ posted a time of 6:00.40, the second-best time of the morning, to win its four-team heat, which included second-place Wisconsin (6:09.69). Cal's 2V8+ moves on to the 10:30 a.m. grand final on Saturday. The Bears' 2V8+ finished second in last year's IRA grand final.
"The JVs had a good race, and it'll be harder in the final, obviously," Teti said.
Cal lost Thursday's first novice 8+ heat to Harvard, 6:01.80-6:04.10, and will have to try to advance to the grand final via the Friday repechage round, which is scheduled for a 9:36 a.m. start.
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"The freshmen had a great race," Teti said. "It's a really strong Harvard boat. It was a dogfight all the way down. The freshmen are still improving, and you'll see them improve throughout the regatta. I still think they're in the top three."
The open 4+ battled Wisconsin in the first heat of their event, but the Badgers wound up winning the heat over the second-place Bears, 6:48.60-6:50.85. Cal will move on to the open 4+ repechage round starting at 8:24 a.m. on Friday.
Cal's varsity 4+, rowing in today's second heat, finished a close second to Washington, 6:34.40-6:34.50, after the Bears led most of the way. The V4+ now moves on to the 8:48 a.m. repechage round on Friday.
"The varsity 4+ lost right at the line, essentially in the last five or six strokes," Teti said. "The varsity 4+ certainly improved since Pac-10s. I'm pretty confident they'll make the final. The open 4+, it wasn't a bad race for them. It was the same thing as the freshmen - a dogfight with Wisconsin the whole way. Hopefully they'll get through the rep."
IRA Regatta - Cal Results from June 4
Men's Varsity 8+ Heat 1
1. California 5:51.50. 2. Cornell 5:55.96. 3. Northeastern 5:56.42. 4. Princeton 6:08.93. 5. Oregon State 6:14.69.
Men's Second Varsity 8+ Heat 1
1. California 6:00.40. 2. Wisconsin 6:09.69. 3. Syracuse 6:14.44. 4. Penn 6:23.46.
Men's Novice 8+ Heat 1
1. Harvard 6:01.80. 2. California 6:04.10. 3. Syracuse 6:11.34. 4. Navy 6:12.03. 5. Oregon State 6:23.09. 6. Gonzaga 6:24.67.
Men's Open 4+ Heat 1
1. Wisconsin 6:48.60. 2. California 6:50.85. 3. Cornell 7:03.81. 4. Oregon State 7:10.76. 5. George Washington 7:21.54.
Men's Varsity 4+ Heat 2
1. Washington 6:34.40. 2. California 6:34.50. 3. Wisconsin 6:49.29. 4. Brown 7:01.30. 5. San Diego 7:25.44.
